<header class="guide-hero"> <h1>Technology & Research</h1> <p class="lede"> Research turns the industrial revolution to your advantage. Napoleon: Total War splits the tech tree into three schools, and — unlike Empire — you can actively speed it up. </p></header><section> <h2>The three schools</h2> <ul> <li><strong>Military</strong> — improves your armies and navies: better drill, artillery and ship fittings. Examples include <em>platoon firing</em> (fire-by-rank), <em>shrapnel</em> and <em>explosive shells</em> for artillery, and <em>copper sheathing</em> and <em>topsails</em> for ships.</li> <li><strong>Industrial</strong> — grows the economy: agriculture, commerce and manufacturing techs that raise region wealth and trade.</li> <li><strong>Cultural</strong> — enlightenment and social techs that affect public order, research rate and national ideas. Some increase unrest, so time them with a stable empire.</li> </ul></section><section> <h2>How research works</h2> <ul> <li>Open the <strong>Technology panel</strong> and queue a tech; it completes over turns, costing research points.</li> <li>Your <strong>schools and universities</strong> generate research each turn. Build them up in your wealthy regions.</li> <li>A <strong>Gentleman stationed at a university boosts research</strong> there — keep one parked for the whole campaign (see the <a href="/guides/agents/">Agents guide</a>).</li> <li>A Gentleman planted in an <strong>enemy</strong> university can steal or slow their tech instead.</li> </ul></section><section> <h2>Why research compounds</h2> <p> Research is the one investment in Napoleon that pays you back forever. A military drill tech you unlock in turn twenty makes every line infantry you recruit for the rest of the campaign better; an economic tech quietly lifts the tax of every region you own. Because the benefit is permanent and cumulative, falling behind in research is the surest way to lose the late game even if you are winning battles. The factions that win long campaigns are the ones that never let their universities go idle. </p></section><section> <h2>Military techs worth prioritising</h2> <p> Platoon firing (fire-by-rank) lets your line infantry fire continuously instead of in volleys, which is a massive damage increase for the unit you will use most. Shrapnel and explosive shells turn your artillery from a formation-punisher into a battle-winner by extending its effective range and splash. On the naval side, copper sheathing reduces hull wear and topsails raise speed, both of which matter enormously on long voyages and in fleet actions. If you are a land power, lead with drills and shells; if you are a sea power, lead with ship fittings. </p></section><section> <h2>Industrial techs and the economy</h2> <p> The industrial school is less sexy but often more decisive. Agriculture, commerce and manufacturing techs raise the wealth of your regions, which means more tax, which means bigger armies and more research. The common error is to ignore industry while chasing military techs — but a richer empire researches faster <em>and</em> fields larger armies, so the two schools reinforce each other. A balanced opening puts at least one economic tech in the queue at all times. </p></section><section> <h2>Cultural techs: power with a cost</h2> <p> Cultural techs are the trap for impatient players. Some raise your research rate or grant useful national ideas, but others increase public unrest as enlightenment spreads. In a stable, consolidated empire that is acceptable; in a freshly conquered, multi-cultural one it can tip provinces into revolt. The rule is to time cultural techs for when your government buildings and garrisons can absorb the unhappiness, not when you are still expanding. </p></section><section> <h2>Priorities</h2> <ul> <li><strong>Early:</strong> a couple of military drills and one economy tech so your line infantry and treasury both improve.</li> <li><strong>Mid:</strong> artillery techs (shrapnel/explosive) turn sieges and set-piece battles in your favour.</li> <li><strong>Naval powers:</strong> copper sheathing + topsails make your fleet faster and tougher — essential before a long voyage.</li> <li><strong>France only:</strong> the unique <em>Napoleonic Code</em> tech boosts happiness — a documented in-game bonus.</li> </ul></section><section> <h2>The France edge</h2> <p> France’s unique Napoleonic Code tech is a concrete example of how research ties into government: it boosts public order, which directly offsets the unrest of conquest. No other faction gets it, and it is one reason a French campaign can expand more aggressively than its rivals without its provinces rebelling. If you play France, treat the Code as a priority rather than a curiosity. </p></section><section> <h2>A sample research order for France</h2> <p> To make the abstract concrete, a solid opening for a French campaign runs: turn one queue a military drill (fire-by-rank) and an economic agriculture tech, because both pay back immediately — better line infantry and a richer home region. Around the mid-game, pivot to artillery techs (shrapnel, then explosive shells) so your sieges and set-piece battles tip in your favour. Once you have a navy or overseas ambitions, add copper sheathing and topsails. And do not forget the Napoleonic Code when it becomes available, because its public-order bonus directly offsets the unrest of your conquests. This order is not the only good one, but it illustrates the principle: lead with what improves what you are already doing, then branch into what your plan needs next. </p></section><section> <h2>Watching the enemy's tech</h2> <p> Research is not only your own progress; it is also intelligence. When a rival suddenly fields better artillery or faster ships, that is a signal about their research priorities, and you can respond by planting a gentleman in their university to slow them or by racing your own counter-tech. The factions that ignore the tech race find themselves out- gunned in the late game no matter how well they fought early. Treat the technology panel as a scoreboard as much as a shopping list. </p></section><section class="related"> <h2>Related</h2> <ul> <li><a href="/guides/agents/">Agents</a> — Gentlemen and research</li> <li><a href="/guides/unit-types/">Unit Types</a> — what the military techs improve</li> <li><a href="/guides/government/">Government & Diplomacy</a> — public order and tech-driven unrest</li> </ul></section>